Balance of Friendship
Why play this way?
Your little one will enjoy the fun of building a DIY scale and experimenting with balance. As they adjust each side, they’ll engage with concepts like weight, addition, subtraction, and cause & effect—developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills. When shared with others, this activity becomes an opportunity to practice social skills by learning to balance not just the scale, but also different needs and preferences—just like the themes of friendship and compromise in Bookie & Cookie.
SET THE STAGE FOR PLAY: 10 Minutes
Ready
Clothes hanger
Ribbon or yarn
2 strong rubber bands
2 empty yogurt or applesauce cups
Dry beans or pennies for weights
Collection of small loose parts
- Dice, toy cars, LEGO bricks, etc.
Set
Wrap a rubber band around the top of each cup.
Tie a short piece of ribbon or yarn to each rubber band to create handles for the cups.
Use two equal lengths of ribbon or yarn to attach the cup handles to the ends of the clothes hanger.
Hang your new scale so that it’s level, and you’re ready to play!
Play!
Put some beans or pennies in each cup.
- Is your scale balanced?
- Can you adjust it to make it balance?
- How many beans/pennies are in each cup?
Experiment with adding or taking away beans/pennies.
- How does the number of items in each cup change the way the scale moves?
Explore weighing your loose parts on the scale.
- What can you do to make your scale balance now?
Play your way! Experiment and explore with your new scale.
